The object of Breakout is to demolish rows of colored bricks.
Each time you hit a brick with the ball, you score the appropriate
number of points and the brick disappears. Hitting the wall in the
same place each time results in breaking a path through it. Once
the ball breaks through the wall, it rebounds against the top of
the wall and the top of the screen knocking out bricks until it
breaks back through to the bottom of the wall. Obviously, this
scores a good number of points. The bad news about breaking
through is that when it happens, the paddle is immediately
reduced to half its original size, making it more difficult to keep
the ball in play. However, with a little more concentration and
a finer touch on the paddle controller the wall can be totally
demolished. The key to hitting the ball back consistently is
anticipating where it will hit the bottom of the screen. If you
wait to see where it's going to land, you'll get there too late to
catch it.

You move your paddle left and right at the bottom of the screen.
The speed of the video paddle is not limited, as in some games; it
moves at the same rate as the paddle controller. The red button
on the controller serves the ball to start each turn.

The video paddle (not to be confused with the paddle controller)
is divided into four sections. Each section has a different
rebound angle, so you can anticipate where the ball will go.
However, the rebound angle becomes sharper after the eighth hit,
then less sharp again after the sixteenth hit. After the
forty-eighth hit the paddle is divided into only two sections,
with each rebound angle being about 45 degrees. You'll have to
gain a fair amount of expertise to make use of this information
about the angles. At first, it will take all of your coordination
just to get the paddle to hit the ball, never mind at what spot on
the paddle. Also, attempting to hit the ball at the edge of the
paddle often results in missing it altogether. The speed of the
ball is not controllable, but does increase after the eighth hit
and as the ball knocks out one of the bricks in the top four rows
of the wall.

Breakout is like Checkers in that it's incredibly easy to learn, but
difficult to master. It's simple enough for novices and children
to pick up and play, but pros will also get a lifetime of enjoyment
out of this classic evolution of Pong.